If you are new to Ubuntu MATE, or only casually acquainted with Linux
based distributions, it can be difficult to understand how a Linux
operating system compares with other computer systems that you may
already be familiar with. Hopefully this page will help demystify
Ubuntu MATE for new-comers.

Ubuntu

Ubuntu is one of, if not the, largest deployed
Linux based desktop operating systems in the
world. Linux is at the heart of Ubuntu and makes it possible to create
secure, powerful and versatile operating systems, such as Ubuntu and
Android. Android is now in the hands of
billions of people around the world and it’s also powered by Linux.

Ubuntu is available in a number of different flavours, each coming
with its own desktop environment. Ubuntu MATE takes the Ubuntu base
operating system and adds the MATE Desktop.

MATE Desktop

an implementation of the desktop metaphor made of a bundle of
programs running on top of a computer operating system, which share a
common graphical user interface (GUI). Desktop GUIs help the user to
easily access and edit files.

The MATE Desktop is one such implementation of a desktop environment
and includes a file manager which can connect you to your local and
networked files, a text editor, calculator, archive manager, image
viewer, document viewer, system monitor and terminal. All of which are
highly customisable and managed via a control centre.

MATE Desktop provides an intuitive and attractive desktop environment
using traditional metaphors, which means if you’ve ever used
Microsoft Windows or Apple Mac
OS, it will feel very familiar.

The MATE Desktop has a rich history and is the continuation of the
GNOME2 desktop, which was the default desktop environment on many Linux
and Unix operating systems for over a decade. This means that MATE
Desktop is tried, tested and very reliable.

Powerful Applications

While MATE Desktop provides the essential user interfaces to control
and use a computer, Ubuntu MATE adds a collection of additional
applications to turn your computer into a truly powerful workstation.

Entertainment

Naturally you’ll also find a firewall, backup application,
document/photo scanner and printer management all included in Ubuntu
MATE. And this is just the start. The Ubuntu Software Centre
includes thousands of applications suitable for just about any
professional or recreational pursuit.

Games

In recent years Linux has become a first class gaming platform thanks
to Valve bringing the
Steam platform to Linux. At the time
of writing Steam has thousands of high quality indie and AAA titles
available for Linux. Ubuntu MATE is fully compatible with Steam for Linux.

While Steam is a major step forward for gaming on Linux, there are also
many high quality and enjoyable Open Source games titles available for
Ubuntu MATE via Software Boutique and Software Centre. It doesn’t
matter if you like flight simulators, motor racing, first person
shooters, jump and run or card games, you’ll find something to keep you entertained.

Open Source

What Linux, Ubuntu and MATE Desktop all have in common is they are
Open Source. Open source software is software that can be freely used,
changed, and shared (in modified or unmodified form) by anyone. In a
nutshell Ubuntu MATE is free, in the truest sense of the word.

Although you will find some versions (distributions) of Linux for
purchase, the vast majority are provided free of charge, like Ubuntu
MATE. Open Source software is licensed in a way that allows anyone to
give it away for free, no strings attached. For example, the licence
gives any member of the user community the freedom to use Linux for any
purpose, to distribute, modify, redistribute, or even sell the operating
system. If you do modify and then redistribute Linux with your
modifications, you are required by the licence to submit your
modifications for possible inclusion into future versions. There is no
guarantee that this will ever happen, but if you have made it better,
then your changes just might be included in the next release of Ubuntu MATE.

This is how we can continually improve and grow without having to charge
our users money. Many of the users of Linux are corporations that use
the operating system to run their businesses, or include it within their
products. Many of these corporations provide fixes and new features for
Linux as they use the software for their businesses. These improvements
are given back to the Linux distribution and the software improves as a result.

Unlike Windows, and OSX, Linux is not created and supported by just one
company. It is supported by Intel, Redhat, Linaro, Samsung, IBM, SUSE,
Texas Instruments, Google, Canonical, Oracle, AMD, and Microsoft. Over
4,000 developers contributed to Linux over the last 15 years.

Whether you are a home user of Ubuntu MATE, a Ubuntu MATE software or
application developer, or an employee of an organisation that uses the
operating system, you are a member of the Linux and Open Source
communities and benefit from the efforts of the developers who contribute
to Ubuntu MATE and its related projects, Linux, MATE, and Ubuntu. Members
of the community can and do run Linux on almost any hardware, from the
prettiest Macbook to the cheapest netbook, from the newest Chromebook to
some very old machines designed for Windows, and from the most powerful
Internet servers to the smallest smart thermostat.